Project Atlas data center is worth it for tax revenue

Let me start off by saying I know nothing about artificial intelligence or data centers. But I do know they are here now and here to stay. Therefore, what is everybody scared about? Do they explode, cause cancer or increase traffic problems? I don’t think they do any of that.

However, I do know that every time I drive up Route 309, there are a bunch of signs protesting their existence. Look, I know people have every right to protest, since these days everybody protests everything. But if a data center is prepared to pay Parkland School District $11 million a year, that’s right, $11 million in taxes, that’s quite a sum of money.

With that being said, people need to make a decision. Either the data center pays the money or we the taxpayers pay it. This isn’t a partisan issue, this is something that helps everybody. Therefore, my advice is to rethink your position or they may pass on the project or benefit another area with that tax money. So, good luck!

— James Knerr, Emmaus

Musk’s donation shows too much money in politics

The Morning Call’s headline regarding Elon Musk’s quarter billion dollar donation puts an exclamation mark on what is wrong with our political system: Too much money, which allows donors to demand their quid pro quo. The everyday citizen has no chance their voice will be heard.

— Chris Letourneau, Bethlehem Township

Mackenzie demonstrates practical leadership

Americans are tired of watching politicians argue while important problems go unresolved. We need representatives who understand that making progress sometimes means working with people who disagree with them.

U.S. Rep. Ryan Mackenzie has demonstrated a willingness to work across party lines. He has partnered with Democratic colleagues on proposals addressing prescription drug cost transparency, veterans access to care and other issues that affect everyday Americans. These efforts show that good ideas should be judged by whether they help people, not simply by which party proposes them.

Bipartisanship does not mean abandoning your principles. It means recognizing opportunities to find common ground and deliver meaningful results. I want a representative who will stand firm when necessary but also work with anyone willing to improve our community. Ryan Mackenzie’s bipartisan efforts are an encouraging example of the kind of practical leadership we need in Washington.

— Mona Chibber, Whitehall Township

Mackenzie hasn’t delivered on his 2024 promises

When Ryan Mackenzie ran for office in 2024, he promised to lower costs. His so-called commonsense and bipartisan solutions have failed.

When he took office in 2025, I was paying 12 cents a kilowatt for both electrical supply and distribution. Now the total is 20 cents a kilowatt. Heating oil was $3.28 a gallon; today it’s over $6. The average price for gasoline was $3.56 a gallon, now it’s $4.36. The USDA reports that in January 2025, the average cost of a pound of ground beef was $5.82; as of August, it was $7.16 a pound.

Mackenzie endlessly champions the tax cuts of the “big beautiful bill” he supported. What he fails to mention is how those tax cuts contributed to the additional $11 trillion of national debt that now stands at a record of $40 trillion.

Next, consider the continuing boondoggle of Mackenzie-supported tariffs. Along with increasing the price Americans pay for goods, there’s the additional cost of loss of respect and solidarity from our allies. Meanwhile, the trade deficit continues to balloon.

Finally, since Mackenzie was elected, he has not held one open, in-person public forum. What’s he hiding from?

— Mike Neetz, Upper Milford Township

Elected officials should be held to their oaths

Did you know that a surprising variety of public officials, federal and state, plus judges, military and more, are required to swear or affirm that they will support, defend and abide by the Constitution of the United States? This requirement is spelled out in Article 6, Clause 3 of the Constitution. The president has a separate oath in Article 2 specific to the great importance of the president’s role.

These sworn oaths are meant to be taken seriously to preserve our great nation and our system of laws. If they are ignored or disregarded, they are done so at our peril as a free and democratic society, once the envy of the world.

Let’s hold our elected officials to their sworn oaths, or replace them.

— Barry Kessler, Lower Saucon Township 

Save animals from Halloween horror

Ghosts? Fun! Zombies? Bring them on! Haunted houses? We’ll take two tickets. But this Halloween, there is something genuinely frightening we should talk about.

Every day, animals are transported into slaughterhouses most of us will never see. What happens inside is kept far away from grocery stores, restaurant menus and cheerful food packaging. We even use comfortable words like “beef,” “pork” and “poultry” to help us forget what our food once was. Maybe that is because looking too closely would scare us.

Here is the good news: Halloween horror is supposed to be pretend. We can fill our parties with plant-based candy, cook frighteningly good vegan food, carve pumpkins, dress like monsters and celebrate everything wonderfully weird about October without making the night terrifying for anyone else.

This Halloween, save the screams for the haunted house — and leave animals off the menu.

— Alan Meekes, Allentown

Election letters

Letters to the editor about candidates and issues in the Nov. 3 general election must be received by 10 a.m. Oct. 22.  Election-related letters will not be published after Oct. 29.

The Morning Call publishes letters from readers online and in print several times a week. Submit a letter to the editor at letters@mcall.com. The views expressed in this piece are those of its individual author(s), and should not be interpreted as reflecting the views of this publication.